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<p>CZ Top Computers bought the Carnegie Building, Monticello's oldest surviving
public building and former public library, in 2008 from the City of Monticello.
The following account of its history is not authoritative; we are entirely
without documentation. If you have any information or documentation you would
share with us about the Carnegie Building, please let us know.</p>

<p></p><br/>

<h1>&nbsp;Contest&nbsp;</h1>

<p>What color should we paint the Carnegie Building? Give us your thoughts for
the stucco and the trim; we'll post copies of the Carnegie bedizened with our
favorites from your suggestions!</p>

<p style="margin-left:2em;">Click <a href="mailto:knopp@cztopcomputers.com">here </a> to make a suggestion. Type
'Carnegie colors' in the subject box.</p>

<p></p>

<p></p>

<p>A Hearsay History of Monticello's Carnegie Building:</p>

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      <td class="PageBody">In the late nineteenth century, a group of
        civic-minded ladies started a lending library that was rotated among
        their homes. When Andrew Carnegie began funding public libraries, a
        Monticello group asked him for a library. He offered a grant of $10,000
        on condition that it was matched. The matching funds were raised,
        albeit partly in donated land; construction began in 1903 and the
        Monticello Public Library opened in 1904. (No nonsense then about
        naming a facility for the man who donated half the cost.)</td>
      <td><img alt="Early photo of Carnegie Bldg." src="../../Content/img/Library.jpg" height="199" width="300"> </td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
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<p style="margin-left:3em">The Carnegie was designed with room for a library to
grow. For over fifty years, the library's collection grew in its confines.
Unfortunately, there were other problems: The brick shown above was not a
veneer, but the very structure of the building, laid in three thicknesses.
Local lore has it that the local brick was not baked hot enough to use as an
exterior surface. This is why the stucco veneer you see today was added.
(When?) By the 1960s, that hot new decorating material, panelling, was
installed over the plaster walls, and wall-to-wall carpeting covered the wooden
floors. Generally these "improvements" were not made unless there were problems
to be hidden. Judging by the walls' condition in 2008, water had caused the
plaster to deteriorate. The condition of the floors is still not known; while
the shabby carpet is gone, the upper story's floors remain covered by the
fiberboard underlayment of the carpet. As funds permit, we hope to return the
Carnegie to having floors of local wood.</p>

<p style="margin:3em">By 1980, the collection had grown to the point that
additional shelving units were needed. As the walls were full, the new units
had to be placed in the center of the large reading rooms. Books are heavy!
This led to greater stresses on the floor joists than had been originally
intended; over time the floor joists began to sag. The library's Board of the
late 1980s began to study expansion and renovation. Eventually, a later library
Board decided on a new facility rather than expansion. In all the unmentioned
nonsense, the Carnegie's 2004 centennial was ignored. What a pity.</p>

<p>When Zumbach bought the Carnegie, he removed the dropped ceilings,
carpeting, panelling and ruined plaster. New, insulated walls were erected
throughout the interior; the facility was re-wired and additional plumbing was
added. The original floor plan has been retained. Because the walls are now
thicker than the originals, there is a gap between the window frames and any
window trim. As funds permit (a common phrase around here), we will have
spacers fitted and stained to match the original trim. Remember: Your computer
repairs and purchases help fund the renovation of this historic building!</p>
